Chapter 7: Small Fruits and Brambles


Chapter 7: Small Fruits and Brambles


GOOSEBERRY
Ribes grossularia L. and R. hirtellum Michx., family Saxifragaceae

The European gooseberry (Ribes grossularia L.) belongs almost wholly to Great Britain. The American gooseberry (R. hirtellum Michx.) is the only species of commercial significance in the United States. It is found from Newfoundland to Maryland and west to the Rockies and comprises many cultivars (Hedrick 1938*). Commercial U.S. production consists of about 200 acres, mostly in Michigan and California.

Plant:

The gooseberry is a bush-fruit grown for its large berries, which are mostly consumed green in baked pies. It is usually propagated by cuttings as the seeds are open-pollinated, and resulting plants may be quite variable. It is a cool, moisture-loving plant, adapted to cool or cold climates. Production of 300 to 600 bushels (40 Ib/bu) per acre is possible (Bailey 1915*, v. 3, pp. 1201 - 1760). Usually, production is limited to a few dooryard plants or at most a few acres. The plant has spines on the woody branches. Severe pruning is necessary to remove excess branches and growth. Little cultivation is required. About 40 cultivars have been listed (Yeager and Latzke 1933, Berger 1942).

Inflorescence:

In the spring, one to three gooseberry flowers per raceme appear during the flowering period, which lasts less than a month. The calyx tube is round, with the receptacle cup-shaped and about one-half inch across. There are four to five petals, with the same number of stamens attached to the perianth. The ovary is one-celled with numerous ovules. Both nectar and pollen are produced, and both are attractive to pollinating insects (Robbins 1931 ).

Pollination Requirements:

Yeager (1935) stated that, "So far as we know, gooseberries are all self-fertile, hence cross-pollination is unnecessary and only one variety need be grown to get a crop of fruit." He apparently was not distinguishing between self-compatibility and the ability to self-pollinate. Colby (1926) also concluded, and apparently for the same reason, that gooseberries can bear fruit without the aid of insects. Robbins (1931) stated that insects are the chief agents of pollination. Auchter and Knapp (1937*) stated, "Practically all commercial varieties of currants and gooseberries are self-fruitful and thus no provision need be made for cross-pollination." Smith and Bradt (1967*) stated that gooseberries are self-fruitful and self-pollinating. However, Zakharov (1958) showed that the percentage of ripe berries, their weight and number of seeds per berry, on the average, was greater in those varieties where bees were working during bloom.

Philp (1933) stated that gooseberries and currants are self-fruitful, but they require insect application of the pollen from the anthers to the stigma. Offord et al. (1944) stated that seed production depended on insect pollinators, and the flowers of at least four species were self- sterile. (Of 736 self-pollinated flowers not a single mature fruit was obtained, but 621 cross-pollinated flowers within the species set 286 fruits.) They concluded that all seed-bearing fruit of the four species studied, Ribes roezlii Regel, R. nevadense Kellogg, R. viscosissimum Pursh, and R. glutinosum Benth. resulted from cross-pollination by insects. "The selfed flowers were pollinated by anthers from within the same protective bag."

Although the above test was performed on different species, there are no data to infer that self-sterility of the cultivated species would be different just because the plant will produce fruit. Apparently, Yeager (1935) and Auchter and Knapp (1937*) believed that because no fruit-set problem arose on isolated cultivars, they were self-fertilizing, when in reality they might have been dependent on insects to carry pollen from plant to plant or anther to stigma within the cultivar. Apparently, insects are of value to gooseberries for maximum set.

Pollinators:

Little attention has been given to the pollinating insects on gooseberries, but considering the area in which the plants grow, honey bees should be the best pollinating agents on this plant.

Pollination Recommendations and Practices:

There are no recommendations on the use of insect pollinators on gooseberries, and it is probable that where small plantings occur there may be ample pollination. However, the data indicate that if maximum production is desired, maximum pollinator activity should be provided. If there are insufficient local pollinators, they should be supplemented with honey bees.

LITERATURE CITED:

BERGER, A. 1924. A TAXONOMIC REVIEW OF CURRANTS AND GOOSEBERRIES. N.Y. (Geneva) Agr. Expt. Sta. Bul. 109, 118 pp. COLBY, A. S. 1926. NOTES ON SELF-FERTILITY OF SOME GOOSEBERRY VARIETIES. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. Proc. 23d Ann. Mtg.: 138-140. OFFORD, H. R, QUICK, C. R., and Moss, V. D. 1944. SELF-INCOMPATIBILITY IN SEVERAL SPECIES OF RIBES IN THE WESTERN STATES. Jour. Agr. Res. 68: 65 - 71. PHIL(I)P, G. L. (sic.) 1933. BRIEF SUMMARY OF CALIFORNIA POLLINATION STUDIES. In lowa State Apiarist Rpt., 1932, pp. 39-43. ROBBINS, W. W. 1931. THE BOTANY OF CROP PLANTS. 639 pp. P. BlakstonÕs Son & Co., Inc., Philadelphia. YEAGER, A. F. 1935. GROWING FRUIT IN NORTH DAKOTA. N. Dak. Agr. Expt. Sta. Bul. 280, 48 pp. ______and LATZKE, E. 1933. GOOSEBERRIES: VARIETIES, BREEDING, CULTURE AND USE. N. Dak. Agr. Expt. Sta. Bul. 267, 19 pp. ZAKHAROV, G. A. 1958. BEES IN POLLINATION OF BLACK CURRANTS AND GOOSEBERRIES.] Pchelovodstvo 35: 29 - 33. [In Russian.] AA-179/60.


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